I. Field
The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communications, and more specifically to techniques for resource management in a wireless communication system.
II. Background
Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various communication services; for instance, voice, video, packet data, broadcast, and messaging services can be provided via such wireless communication systems. These systems can be multiple-access systems that are capable of supporting communication for multiple terminals by sharing available system resources. Examples of such multiple-access systems include Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) systems, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) systems, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) systems, and Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) systems.
As the demand for high-rate and multimedia data services rapidly grows, there has been an effort toward implementation of efficient and robust communication systems with enhanced performance. For example, in recent years, users have started to replace fixed line communications with mobile communications and have increasingly demanded great voice quality, reliable service, and low prices.
In addition to mobile telephone networks currently in place, a new class of small base stations has emerged, which can be installed in the home of a user and provide indoor wireless coverage to mobile units using existing broadband Internet connections. Such personal miniature base stations are generally known as access point base stations, or, alternatively, Home Node B (HNB) or Femto cells. Typically, such miniature base stations are connected to the Internet and the network of a mobile operator via a Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) router, cable modem, or the like.
Wireless communication systems can be configured to include a series of wireless access points, which can provide coverage for respective locations within the system. Such a network structure is generally referred to as a cellular network structure, and access points and/or the locations they respectively serve in the network are generally referred to as cells.
Because the strength of a signal typically decreases as the distance over which it is communicated increases, a network user can, under various circumstances, exchange substantially strong signals with cells located physically close to the user as compared to cells that are located farther away from the user. However, for various reasons, a user may not communicate with a wireless communication system through the cell closest to the user. For example, due to differences in capabilities of respective cells in the network, a cell closest to a user may be unable to provide a desired service to a user or may only be capable of providing the service with a lesser quality than a cell located further away. As another example, a closest cell to a user may have restricted access such that the user is not authorized to connect to the cell.
In these and other similar situations, signals transmitted from a user to a serving cell for the user can additionally be observed at other cells whose coverage areas include the physical location of the user. Thus, if these cells attempt to communicate using the resources on which the user transmits to its serving cell, substantial interference can result. Accordingly, it would be desirable to implement resource management techniques for a wireless communication system that mitigate at least the above shortcomings.